File for letters



(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 1.

. FILE FOR LETTERS; BILLS, AGGOUNTS, &0-

No; 501,745. Patented July. 18,1893.

INVEIITDK UNITED STATES ARTHUR H. SWANK,

PATENT ()FFICE.

OF FREMONT, OHIO.

FILE FOR LETTERS, BILLS, ACCOUNTS, 800.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 501,745, dated July 18, 1893. Application filed February 14, 1893. Serial No. 462,319. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that 1, ARTHUR H. SWANK, of

Fremont, in the county of Sandusky and State.

of Ohio, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Files for Letters, Bills, Accounts, &c.; and I do hereby declare the following to bea full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it pertains to make and use the same.

My invention relates to improvements in files for letters, bills, accounts, &c., and it consists in certain features of construction and in combination of parts hereinafter described and pointed out in the claims.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a View in perspective of a file embodying my invention showing the index and matter filed in position. Fig. 2 is an elevation, partly in section, showing the manner .of detachably securing the fixed arches or holders that carry or hold the index and serve as a back forthe matter filed. Fig. 3 is an enlarged plan View of the file with the index removed. Fig. at is a view in section on line l4, Fig. 3.

My improved file comprises a base, A, made preferably of wood and three arches or U- shaped holders, B and O O, arranged the one B centrally of the base and the others 0 0 equal distances at opposite sides, respectively, of the central arch or holder. Arches or holders O G are detachably fixed to the base inv any suitable manner, but preferably as shown.

in Fig. 2 wherein the ends of said arches extend through corresponding holes in a metallic plate D rigidly secured preferably by means of screws 01 to the base of the file and the ends of said fixed arches are screw-p threaded and extend into recesses a in the under side of the base where theyhave mounted thereon nuts 0 for securely holding the same in place in conjunction with shoul' ders or collars, 0 ,1011 the arches .or. holders above the base. By the construction just described, it will be observed that upon removing nuts 0 the fixed arches or holders may be removed as required for the insertion of a new index or other purposes, and that metallic plate D affords lateral bearing for the arches.

E represents the index that, asshown, is held in place by the two fixed arches or holders and the index may be moved upon said arches or holders as required for the insertion of papers requiring filing. The central arch or holder is made separable, the same comprising an upright member or section, b, rigidly secured to the base of the file in any suitable manner and terminating at its upper end in a conical or pointed extremity I) over which the papers to be filed are slipped. Said extremity of section b is adapted to engage a corresponding recess or depression, 19 in the free end ofthe remaining portion 6 of the arch. Section b of the arch is rigid with an oscillating pin Gthat has bearing in upwardly projecting ears (1 of plate D and between said cars is provided with a laterally-extending arm or lever, g, for oscillating said pin and thereby separating the sections of the central arch or holder to accommodate the insertion of the papers to be filed. Of course it will be understood that the index works upon the three arches or holders, but they matter to be filed is carried only by the central arch or holder, and the fixed arches or holders constitute a back for the file and serve to guide the papersfiled when carried or moved upon the central arch or holder. P, Fig. 1, represents papersfiled. It will also be observed that my improved construction requires but one perforation of thepaper filed and avoids papers filed being free tomove without binding, and at the same time being properly held in place. As already indicated, the central arch or holder, upon depressing the free end of the operating lever, is separated for the reception of the papers requiring filing,- as shown in dotted lines, Figs. 1 and 4, and said arch or holder is held separated as long as said leveris held depressed. Upon the release of the lever the latter, by the action of a spring wH, interposed between the lever and base of the file,'and seated in arecess, a,in saidbase, is returned to. its normal position, resulting forator, g, that is adapted,upon. the depres sion of said end of the lever, to engage alateral hole, 7c, in a metallic plate, K, secured, by

any binding of the same upon the arch, the,

in the closing together of the members-or sec-,

The operating lever at or near its free end means of screws,K, preferably flush with the top surface of the base'of the tile. By means of said punch or perforator the paper to be filed is adapted to be perforated, as desired, for slipping the'paper over fixed member b of the central or separable arch or holder. The base of the file, in open relation with lateral perforation 7c in plate K, is provided with a lateral hole, of, for the escape of the bits of paper punched from the papers filed.

Another feature of my invention consists in the employment of a stripper or suitable device for stripping the paper to be filed after being punched or perforated from the punch or perforator. A preferable construction is shown in Figs. 3 and 4, wherein the stripper L is made of spring wire suitably secured to the base of the file and suitably embracing the outer end of the punch or perforator when the latter is in its elevated or normal position and located somewhat outside of or below the plane in which the outer end of thepunch or perforator is located, as shown at Z in Fig. 4:,

so that the paper to be filed upon being punched or perforated shall be stripped from the perforator.

Another feature of my invention consists in suitable means for holding the index and matter filed firmly in place when the file is not in use and for compacting the index and papers filed, and thereby enlarge the capacity of the file. This feature of my invention is shown very clearly in Fig. 1, wherein M rep-: resents a spring-wire hook pivotally secured,

as at m, to the top card E of the index, the

spring-hook being adapted to engage the fixed I member of the central arch or holder and bind thereon as shown in solid lines Fig. 1 thereby 1 holding the index and matter filed firmly in place, and by compacting the index and matter'filed preparatory to the application of said i spring-hook, the index and matter filed Will thus be held compacted when not in use, and,

owing to the pressure thus bearing upon theindex and matter filed when the file is not used, the papers filed will naturally become and remaincompacted. In filing papers said I spring-hook is, of course, disengaged from'the central arch or holder as shown in dotted lines, 1.

I would here remark that fixed member 1) of the separable central arch orholder is preferably detachably secured to the supportingbase in the same manner as the outer fixed positively 1 supporting-base and adapted to receive the tomes arches or holders, as shown in Fig. 4, and that metallic plate D furnishes a desirable lateral bearing for said member of the central a ch or holder.

What I claim' is 1..In a file, for letters, bills, accounts, &c., the combination with a supporting-base, and an arch or holder comprising two sections, the one section being fixed to or rigid with the supporting-base and adapted to receive the papers to be filed, and the other section beingpivotally secured to said base and adapted to be separated from the stationary section, of a lever rigid with said movable section for separating the same from the fixed or stationary section, and a spring interposed between said lever and base, and acting in the direction to retain said movablesection closed against the fixed or stationary sect-ion, substantially as set forth.

the combination with a supporting-base, and

an arch or holder comprising two'sections, the one section being fixed to or rigid with the papers to be filed, and the. other section being pivotally secu red to said base, and adapted to be separated from the stationary section, of a lever rigid with said movable section for separating the same from the fixed or stationary section, said lever being provided with a punch or perforator, and a spring interposed between the lever and base and adapted to yieldingly support the outer end of the lever and retain the movable section of the arch movablyclosed substantially as set .forth.

3. The combination with a base, plate D secured thereto, of small arches connected with the baseyand a larger central arch comprising two parts one rigid and the other hinged to the-plateD, and a spring for normally throwing the ends of the two sections of the central arch together, substantially as set forth.

In testimony whereof Isign thisspecification, in the presence of two-witnesses,this-9th day of January, 1893.

ARTHUR H. SWANK.

Witnesses:

LESTER WILSON, J. R. BARTLETT. 

